Military Slang and Acronyms – Installment 2

FEBA – Forward Edge of Battle Area. I wished I had the non-politically correct cartoons that our CPT taught us with in our Chemical Officer Advance Course.

FTX – Field Training Exercise – This is what the Army uses to train soldiers to prepare for combat. I think my most memorable would be Team Spirit 86. I arrived in country and went straight to the field for 2 weeks. If it weren’t for the S-2 shop giving me a ride, I think I might still be standing on that hillside in South Korea.

FOUO – For Official Use Only – This is one way the military kept certain people from knowing pertinent information. Of course, if they wanted to restrict it even further, then they labeled it Secret or Top Secret.

FUBAR – F*cked up Beyond All Repair – This is one my all-time favorite sayings and I still use it today after being retired for 10 years.

HMMWV – High-Mobility Multi-Purpose Wheeled Vehicle – I will never forget my first ride in a Hummer. I was in Korea and we were on a M60 Tank Qualification range. These 2 NCOs asked me if I wanted to go for a ride in the new vehicle. They said you “can’t get them stuck”. So they found the biggest mud hole on the range and let it settle to the bottom and sure enough it came right out.

IRR – Individual Ready Reserve

LZ – Landing Zone

METL – Mission Essential Task List – I was stationed at FT Hood, TX (1987-1990) at the same time as the LTG who had wrote the training FM